By Katherine Sellgren BBC News education reporter

The aim is to make maths lessons more accessible

In an attempt to make mathematical concepts easier for children to understand, musicians have been visiting schools in Lewisham, London, to teach maths through music.

The "Count the Beat" music workshops encourage pupils to explore topics such as probability and fractions, by creating their own rhythms and harmonies.

The scheme, run by a charity called Create, draws on research findings from the United States which suggest combining maths and music can help children, especially those from disadvantaged socio-economic groups, to improve their numerical skills.

Workshops were taken by professional musicians

Create's music workshop leader Simon Gunton has devised various ways of incorporating mathematical concepts into musical activities.

One involves pupils getting into six small groups and - in the style of rappers - chanting sentences which refer probability, such as "It's unlikely that Wigan will win the Premiership" or "It's probable that we'll be late".

With the addition of a die, the musicians add a further element of probability: each group can only chant when its number comes up.

Sessions on fractions are made into a lively musical activity, when pupils have to place various fractions along a number line.

The number line then becomes the score for a particular rhythm which the pupils play out on instruments.

"Because it's new and they're learning different things, some of the mathematical facts will have stuck in, I think," says Mr Gunton.

"We're just trying to reinforce mathematical concepts using the fun of music."

Pupils are impressed

Pupils at Lucas Vale and Lewisham Bridge Primary Schools took part in the one-hour workshops over a six-week period.

The children, aged between nine and 11, said the sessions had helped them in their grasp of maths.

"When we did measurements, they were singing and making rhythm with the drum and they made it easier for us to understand," said Shirley.

Many parents attended a performance demonstrating what they had learnt

"At first I hardly knew anything about fractions, but when I started working with the team, I found it easier," said Patrick.

"It makes maths more fun and easier. You're learning and you're also enjoying it," said Enock.

"It's fun, because there's different stuff to do. I feel more confident," said Natasha.

Live performance

The workshops at Lucas Vale culminated with a special performance for the rest of the school and for parents.

"Even though my parents weren't there, I felt I was more confident than usual," said Jerome.

Head teacher Alexandra Hardy said the children had benefited from additional adult attention that the workshops had offered.

"It's helped raise self esteem as well as helping their learning," said Ms Hardy.

"And the parental turnout for the performance was good - it seems to be because of the children's positivism."

The sessions at Lucas Vale were organised by Create, which aims to bring the arts to disadvantaged groups, and were funded by the Citigroup Foundation.